My Subaru's roof rack was too close together and too far from the back of the car. Even with front and rear tie downs, it bounced around alot and was tough to load. I added an after market hitch and a goalpost. It is now very simple to throw the bow up on the goalpost and slide the AI forward. It is very secure with half the weight on the rack and half on the hitch.

Last edited by dpstivers on Thu Aug 02, 2012 11:00 am, edited 1 time in total.

Well, it's a done deal. After many 100's of $$$, months of not sailing (injuries), sailing my friends boats, and scamming rides on other peoples trailers, (thanks Batman!) I finally loaded my AI and took it on it's inaugural ride atop the SUV from Hell.

As God and Kayak Bob as my witness, it worked!!

I ended up going with Thule glide and set saddles atop the large Thule Aero Wing Bars. You saw the Aero bars picture on the car earlier. They are expen$ive and have a few flaws, but I like them.

On this test flight, I loading the AI solo using the tall custom foam blocks.

Basically, I suction the 2 or 3 foam blocks in place on the curved glass, lift the bow in place and slide her up with barely any resistance.

I'm still a little wobbly lifting and pushing way over my head but when you get used to guiding the hull using the rear "glide" saddles, it goes on/off quickly.

The hull is strapped to/under the bars. The Amas go along side upside down. Straps go through the Amas and around the main hull.

Hey - I can still carefully open the rear hatch with the boat loaded! There's tons or room back there for Akas, etc and everyone's Hakas.

I was really concerned about the balance and need for extra tie downs but it turns out the load is tight and there is no rocking up/down or side to side. For insurance I added a couple ratcheting Thule tiedowns in the front.

There are NO tow bars and lots of thin plastic shroud under the SUVFH's bumper so I anchor onto the engine compartment frame. Clear tubing around the ropes, protects the paint job.

So, things look good. Between sails, I remove the Thule racks so I can save on gas and fit into any garage. They unlock and unscrew in under 2 minutes, using Thule's built in wrench tool.

The funniest part is that we trial loaded the AI in the dark, before a morning sail and found out that the boat JUST fit under the tallest section of my garage, with a breathtaking 1/2" to spare! (Bob has a picture somewhere).

Happy ending? I guess so. Hopefully it's the beginning of many great sails, now that I have finally pimped my kayak ride.

If you have a solid rack, you can get a small atv winch that will do the job easily for super cheap and integrate it in... my buddy did it for much cheaper than any trailer, and for long trips, uneven terrain, or unfamiliar territory it is always nice to not be pulling a trailer.

_________________Everybody dies, but few people TRUELY live... I for one refuse to tiptoe through life, just to arrive safely at death!

I guess I'll show my new way of cartopping that allows me to load and unload fully rigged

If you have a solid rack, you can get a small atv winch that will do the job easily for super cheap and integrate it in... my buddy did it for much cheaper than any trailer, and for long trips, uneven terrain, or unfamiliar territory it is always nice to not be pulling a trailer.

Great job ! I've been thinking about doing that to my Wrangler as I have to open up a can of elbow grease every time I want to to load my AI up there.

I guess I'll show my new way of cartopping that allows me to load and unload fully rigged

If you have a solid rack, you can get a small atv winch that will do the job easily for super cheap and integrate it in... my buddy did it for much cheaper than any trailer, and for long trips, uneven terrain, or unfamiliar territory it is always nice to not be pulling a trailer.

Does your Jeep have a remote start system? that impresses me as much as using the winch to get your kayak loaded up. Smart work, I like the Jeep. and the loading system.